


Just a Friend

by Shmeeeg



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Angst and Feels, F/M, Pillow Fights, comfort cuddles, love confusion, much fluffiness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-06
Updated: 2018-07-06
Packaged: 2019-06-06 01:27:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15183701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shmeeeg/pseuds/Shmeeeg
Summary: Who knew the two people who wanted each other the most, were the most clueless people in history. Natsu and Lucy walking circles around each other as they try to figure out their loves lives is extremely frustrating and surprisingly entertaining.





	Just a Friend

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place whenever you want it to take place, I never really imagined a specific timeframe of where I wanted this to be.
> 
> It is tweaked where Natsu isn't entirely clueless on love and dating and such. But still majorly dense.
> 
> Tags will be updated as time goes on if I feel the need to.
> 
> Rated T ONLY because lots of frustration, bad self thoughts and mild swearing.
> 
> Otherwise be prepared for MAJOR FLUFFINESS.

“C’mon Luce, just tell me the guy’s name.” 

“No way _in hell_. I _know_ you.” Lucy pointed an accusatory finger at her best friend and teammate as she continued , “The moment I tell you, you’re going to go and blab it to whoever will listen and then I’ll be screwed.”

The dragon boy groaned at her stubbornness and flopped back down on the bed, “What’s so good about this guy anyway?”

She let out a tired sigh. How in the world had they even come up on this kind of situation? One minute they were watching movies and enjoying their free Saturday, the next they were talking about their love lives, or, more accurately, the lack thereof.

“There are a lot of things, Natsu. I actually think you would agree with me on some of them.” Lucy took a seat down on her little couch and stretched out, resting her back against one armrest and propping her feet up on the opposite one. 

“I can’t do that if you won’t tell me who he is.” 

He picked his head up from his sprawled position to flash her a mocking smirk. The one that almost always made her realize he had backed her into a corner. Almost.

“That won’t work. Not this time.”

He huffed and flopped his head back down, “Well, then tell me what’s so great about this guy.”

Now it was her turn to groan and flop her head back against the armrest. First the awkward inquisition into her love life, which she finally caved into a few minutes ago. Why the man in front of her wanted to know if she had a crush or not still made absolutely no sense in her mind, seeing as he never really cared about those types of things between them. To top it off, he wanted her to describe her perfect guy, the one she was already freaking head over heels for, in detail. Could this day get anymore awkward?

She rubbed one hand over her face, “Ugh, I don’t know Natsu. There’s just something about him that I find attractive.”

"So... you only find him attractive?"

Lucy picked up her head long enough to glare at the man across from her, "That is not what I meant and you know it. Besides, there are plenty of other things."

This statement finally got him to sit up from his position. He dropped one leg off the edge of the bed and leaned his arms on his knees in a semi-Indian style position, "Then try to name some of them, or something."

She dropped her head back onto the armrest and let out a sigh. Her eyes began to trace the patterns in her ceiling as she thought, "Well, for starters he's kind, and I guess you could say he's smart. Even though most of the time he acts like an idiot."

Natsu scoffed, "An idiot? I thought you liked this guy!"

She snapped her head back up and shifted in her position, "Hey! You're the one who told me to just start naming things."

He held up his hands in mock defense still chuckling to himself, "Alright alright, my bad. Try to stick to the good qualities about this guy."

Lucy let out a sigh. There was so much she wanted to say that made her turn into a gooey, bumbling mess whenever he was around, but if she did she would most definitely give herself away. A smile came to her face as she continued to think.

"Yes he _can_ be an idiot but he's talented, beyond talented. Honestly, I wish I could have just a smige of that skill. He's strong, I'm pretty sure I saw him lift something at least five times the his size over his head once. Now, that, was impressive."

She paused for a minute to try to collect her thoughts and heard Natsu grumbling to himself across the room. Something about being able to lift more. In all honesty she wasn't paying attention, she was too busy getting lost in her own thoughts.

"He's unbelievably loyal to everyone he's close with, and also very protective of those he cares about." A fluttering began in her chest as she continued and her smile grew on her face, "He can be surprisingly gentle when he either wants to be or needs to be, and he genuinely cares about... everyone."

Her eyes cast to the side as she recalled all the things he had done. The way he always seemed to know what to say to make everything alright. How he never cared if he made a fool of himself in front of a few people, or an entire town. As long as he made someone smile he was happy. He was always dancing and laughing and making everyone's day brighter just by his lopsided toothy smile.

"He has such a big heart and whenever I'm around I feel like nothing could ever go wrong. Like everything will always be okay, even if it isn't. I guess you could say he's like my sunshine. Every time I'm around him I can never keep a smile off my face." A warmth spread in her chest as she turned her gaze to Natsu.

If only he knew.

"Well jeez, does this guy have any flaws?" The boy was slumped in his position, his face a mask of pure boredom, "He seems too perfect if you ask me."

She laughed and lolled her head to one side, "Oh, _plenty_. He's reckless and never thinks anything through. He has no sense of personal space, or privacy for that matter, and it drives me nuts, especially when I deliberately tell him not to. Plus the idiot part I mentioned." She paused to catch her breath, "He can be such an asshole sometimes and he gets on my nerves every chance he gets. He loves playing pranks on people, especially his best friends and he's so unbelievably annoying I can't stand him."

Lucy took a glance up at Natsu, "He's not perfect . . but, that's what makes him perfect. He has so many flaws and is still just amazing in every way. He's so incredible that he's almost unobtainable and I'm just..... me." She then sighed and grabbed a fluffy pink pillow, wrapping her arms around it and resting her chin on the top. "I'm just the ordinary, everyday girl who can't seem to stop thinking about him and how amazing he is."

"But, the best thing is he doesn't even know he's so amazing. I would give anything to be half as amazing as him." She chuckled softly to herself, her grip tightening ever so slightly around her pillow. She decided now would be the best time to bury her face in the fluffiness allowing her gaze to fall to her feet at the other end of the couch.

She heard a huff come across from her, "Well, gee, if this guy's so special why don't you just tell him? If he's got any bit of sense he'll at least be willing to try something."

Lucy glanced up at Natsu. He had no idea how many damn times she had considered it. How many times she had thought to just say a big, loud "FUCK IT" to fate, and chance, and all those other forces in her life that had given her this sucky situation. But she knew better than to kid herself. To allow herself to hope when she knew the situation would not go in her favor. Besides if she told him, if she let her mind spill, who's to know it wouldn't completely destroy what they already had? She knew she wouldn't be able to handle it if she lost him completely. Even if maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't make everything awkward and tense with them, she wasn't ready to take that chance.

She let out a sigh and shook her head, casting her gaze back to her pillow, "It wouldn't work."

"What?..." She could hear the confusion lingering in his voice, "How do you know? You can't be sure."

"I just know, Natsu. I already know he doesn't think of me like, that so telling him wouldn't make any difference...."

"What if you're wrong?"

"I'm not wrong."

"But you can't know that!"

Her eyes snapped back up to Natsu, "And how can't I know?!" She sat up straighter, looking him dead in the eye, "Tell me how I wouldn't know!"

"Well you've never even talked with the guy-!"

"I have talked with him! I talk with him almost everyday!" She felt her voice crack. She knew she needed to stop, but she couldn't stop. It was like she finally broke a hole in the dam and now everything was just gushing out.

"He's shown me his _interests_ , and potential _girlfriends_ , and he asks my opinion about things because he thinks of me as a 'friend'. We hand out and laugh and do all the things that friends do because that's all I'll ever be. I'll always be the girl who sits on the sidelines and watches as the love of her life finds _someone else_ to be his sunshine. That makes everyday of his life something to look forward to and I know I can never have that because _I'm just a FRIEND!"_

She wasn't sure at what point she had stood up, but now that she was on her feet she really didn't feel like sitting back down. Her gaze locked with Natsu's as she tried to keep the tears from spilling down her cheeks.

Her hands were like vices around the tiny pillow she was holding, her voice sounding weak and foreign to herself, "Don't you get it?... If I could, I would have told him ages ago. But I can't.... because I'm just, a friend."

There was a soft thud as she fell to her knees on the carpet beneath her feet, burying her face in her pillow so she wouldn't have to look at the expression Natsu was making right now. Great. Just great. Now she had gone and majorly, no, royally fucked up. She couldn't believe she had just exploded on him like that. It wasn't like her. She could normally keep her cool about things but always when it came to this, when it came to him, she couldn't control herself.

She didn't bother to look up as she heard a creak, and then soft shuffling slowly coming closer. He was going to scold her, like he should. They shouldn't be yelling at each other and yet here they were. Hearts shattered and an awkward silence hanging in the air.

"Lucy..."

She didn't budge, keeping her face firmly planted in her pillow. She didn't want to see him or look at him, knowing the moment she did she would cry and she wasn't going to cry with him here.

"Luce."

There it was. The pet name for her he always used. The one she had actually come to be fond of in the years they've worked together.

"Luce, please, can you look at me?"

She shook her head, face still buried in the ridicules pink fluffiness. Hell no.

She heard a sigh and then to her surprise his arm slowly wrapped around her shoulder, pressing her into his chest, "Okay, I get it. This is hard."

There was a pause before he continued, "Obviously you've been dealing with this for a while.... and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say here, _damn_." His arm tightened around her ever so slightly, "is this guy really worth it?"

Lucy had asked herself that question multiple times. Was all this heartache, pining after a guy who could never in a million years be hers, really worth all the pain? Even after many years she still couldn't find the answer.

Natsu patted her head, taking her silence as his answer, "Alright, hey, why don't we put on a movie, huh? One of those sappy-girly one you like so much. Yeah? How about it?"

She finally peeked up from he pillow, "A really sappy one?.."

"As sappy and girly as you want it to be."

"And you won't make comments?"

Natsu pulled back, "Cross my heart, I'll be as quiet as a church dragon." He emphasized the point by making an "x" across his chest.

Lucy snorted, "There's no such thing as a church dragon."

"There is too! It's just really small, so no one sees it very often."

She didn't bother to contain her laughter as they both got up to move themselves to the living room. Natsu disappeared into Lucy's kitchen while she bent down to her small video lacrama and flipped through the picture titles. After picking one she knew Natsu would have to really contain himself to keep quiet, she settled down on the couch and wrapped one of the fuzzy blankets she had everywhere around herself.

Natsu came back a few minutes later, a big bowl of popcorn under one arm and a couple sodas in his other. He casually set all three on the small coffee table and turned to start the lacrama, failing to hide a face of anguish as he bounced back to the couch. Lucy chuckled triumphantly as he settled in next to her, not paying much mind to how he wrapped an arm around her shoulders to pull her close and put the popcorn bowl in his lap. She snuggled in, balling the blanket in her hands so she could burry her face in the soft fabric.

She could never get enough of this. The feeling of bliss that surrounded them in their cosy little space made everything feel like home. It made her want to cocoon herself in this moment and just stay there forever.

"Hey, can I just say something?"

"Hm?" She looked up, tilting her head so that it rested against Natsu's shoulder.

His face was scrunched up, nose wrinkled, eyebrows pinched together, almost as if he had just eaten a nasty batch of fire. He looked as if he was fighting with himself with what he wanted to say. Lucy had never seen him look this uncertain before even with all the things they've been through together. It was starting to make her worried.

"Natsu? What is it?"

He looked down at her face, onyx eyes searching for something he couldn't seem to place. They almost looked sad, or guilty. Like he knew he had done something that would've made her feel this way. In a way he had but, god, she didn't want him to look at her like that. That look just made her want to rip her own heart out of her chest if it would make him feel better. 

"You're not just anybody, you know?" Natsu looked down at his lap, brow furrowing even further, "You're kind, and smart, and one of the most amazing people I've met coming to this guild." She felt her eyes widen as she starred at his face. Was he really saying this? To her? 

Natsu practically growled to himself as he continued to speak, "And if Mr. Freaking-Perfect-What's-His-Face can't see that then... then-" His face snapped back over to her so fast if made her jump, "Then he doesn't deserve to have you!"

Lucy could only blink as he grew quiet turning his face back down towards his lap. His outburst wasn't the thing that had surprised her, lord knows she was used to much worse as far as that was concerned. What surprised her was the fact that someone, someone he didn't even know, was making her feel down and it was getting to him.

"Natsu-"

"No! Shit..." He wouldn't look at her, using one of his hands to actually cover his face. "I'm sorry Lucy, It's just- the way you speak about this guy and the way you think make you feel so bad about yourself and I hate it. I want you to know how special you are and I can't figure out the right words. I can't figure out how to make you understand. I want to make you feel better, but I can't because I can't change the way this guy thinks and... ugh." He dropped his hand back in his lap, "I'm a sucky friend, aren't I?"

"NO!"

Her outburst made the both of them jump. Natsu snapped his head over to her, his eyes wide with surprise, and even she was sitting bolt upright. This was not the problem though. She cupped his face in both her hands and looked at him for a few seconds. He needed to understand, if not for her then for himself.

"Natsu, you are the best friend I could ever ask for. You're always there when I need you and the fact that you're here right now proves that. You're amazing and I can't think of one person who would think any different. So _you_ , can't think any different." She brushed her thumb against his skin, trying to read his face for any sort of reaction, "Okay?"

He sighed, grabbing her hand and leaning in so that he could touch his forehead to hers, "Then I want you to think the same. You are, and always will be, amazing."

She let out a breathy laugh and pulled back slightly so she could look at him again. His eyes were crinkled and the softest of smiles was stretched across his face. Just looking at him like this filled her heart with warmth that she never wanted to let go of even for a second.

"Deal." She flopped back down to his side and buried her neck in blankets again. A small, content sight escaped her as he wrapped his arm around her once again. This time resting the side of his head against the top of hers. It was really hard not to notice how close they were this time around, but honestly, she didn't care anymore.

"So..... Do we still have to watch this?"

She laughed, "Yes, we already started it!"

She could feel him crumple in on himself, letting out a very exaggerated groan in the process. It only made her laugh harder.

"Remember! You promised not to make comments!"

"How can I not? Just look at it!" He began to gesture wildly at the screen with one hand.

A wild smirk came across her face and in the next moment she was grabbing one of the fluffy pillows next to her and smacking it into Natsu's face. Muffling his yelp of surprise as she did so.

"What happened to 'quiet as a church dragon' ?"

"You said they weren't real!" Natsu pushed her pillow away and grabbed a small green pillow of his own, swinging it against her side and causing pillow fluff to go everywhere.

"And you said they were."

"Well, I've changed my mind!"

The room filled with laughter as they continued to beat each other with the not so soft, but very fluffy pillows on the couch. The movie was lost in the background as their battle raged and pillow feathers went all over. Lucy knew that she may, or may never get to tell Mr. Freaking-Perfect-What's-His-Face how she felt and that was ok. Because right then, she was perfectly content with bashing a pink fluffy pillow into her best friend's stupidly handsome face on a not-so-ordinary Saturday.

TBC


End file.
